Numero uno: I don't think my SFR GMP is greater than 12gpm....I have 3/4" CPVC through the home. Its 2.5 bath...are you saying I need a larger softener?
I'm not sure, I can't recall what all has been said in this thread and won't take the time to go look it up right now. But it depends on what your peak demand is and your guessing it isn't over 12 gpm could be a mistake on your part. And now we have AKpsdvan saying 9-13 gpm for a 1.5 cuft. You should be asking yourself how much experience do you and Bob have in sizing a softener for houses with any number of bathrooms? I've been doing it for many years for actual customers. IMO you and Bob haven't. IIRC I have told you to replace the 3/4" CPVC.
Numero two: I know i don't need a turbulator...but if it helps, why not. Gravel underbed? This is the first I suppose I've heard that you have to have one to properly backwash...care to explain?
See now when someone says "but if it helps" I think they are guessing and don't know for sure and that's why I replied to you (again) but you don't see it as helpful and I'll bet that others reading this now and long into the future may disagree with you.
There are disadvantages with the use of a Turbulator distributor tube. One is no gravel underbed. Another is you can not use fine mesh resin. Another is that the softener will use more water for regeneration because to get the Turbulator to work correctly you need a larger gpm DLFC. There are many advantages to a gravel underbed and no disadvantages except for the small $10-15 cost of one.
I know I don't need SST-60 resin either, but the data doesn't lie, it seems more efficient based of the data I've read...what are the other options? C-239?
"It seems..." I agree but in the real world as opposed to a test bed set of data on Purolite's site, you don't gain what the data seems to say you could. And if you size and program correctly to start with with the lowest cost regular mesh resin, you don't need slightly higher efficiencies of SST or C-249 that I used for about 18 years until I learned better, or to pay roughly $100 more per cuft for SST and never recover any of that extra expense. Or $40 more per cuft for C-249 to get a max of only 200 grains more capacity per cuft.
I'm an engineer, so I'd like full explanations on why I don't need things...thus far, really bob has been the most helpful in explaining why those things would be good to have....you on the other hand, seem as though you're trying to make a sale...
Yes I am a lowly softener salesman. And I sell equipment to many people that ask questions in forums. Do you see any of them coming back to any forum anywhere and complaining that the equipment they bought from me didn't deliver what I told them it would? Google and I can't find any so you might think about that a bit before you discount what I'm telling you.
As to Bob being helpful, he is dazzling you with engineer speak but no one that leads you into something that isn't needed or that will cause a failure of equipment is helpful in the end but...
If I were the type of salesman you, Bob and AKpsdvan etc. may be thinking I am, why would I not be agreeing with them and attempting to sell you what those folks are suggesting is best for you?
Do you notice that Bob usually doesn't mention any of the disadvantages of the things he suggests you buy? Including the Fleck 7000? I.E. another potential disadvantage of a Turbulator is excessive wear, bead breakage, of the resin. He probably hasn't read that on any spec sheet yet but when he checks it out, he'll be repeating what I say.
Question; Who do you know that should know more about softeners than a dealer (lowly salesman to you I guess) with all but a quarter century of experience in sizing selling and servicing many brands of control valves and 13 years of posting answers all over the internet (since 2002 here) to questions like yours and 7 years of internet sales from Alaska all across Canada and the US to Purto Rico where anyone with a problem with equipment they bought from me can tell everyone that will read the posts?
To check that out do a Goggle search for "Gary Slusser" with the "" and see if you can find dissatisified customers.